It was my first trip to Myanmar after many attempts that I planned to visit this country but failed. Myanmar in a reflection as a Cambodian in my environment considers as a golden country or what a so-called origin of Sovannaphumi (golden land) which later on spreaded into other mainland Southeast Asian countries. My first and foremost impression to the areas that we had visited, the situations in Myanmar were not that bad as what I have heard or news reading outside Myanmar prior to the visit. Myanmar people enjoy their daily lives, making business same as those others people in other countries. Again, unless they do not involve in any political activities against the government or perhaps the situations in other ethnic States that we didn’t visit, different.

Myanmar’s countryside has totally enjoys the similarity to what exist here in my country, Cambodia. All of the activities such as people growing the palm trees and gain benefit from these trees. People using the trucks with plenty of passengers sitting on the roof had reminded me of what happened in Cambodia.

However, I had noticed that, Myanmar people are so religious compare to the Cambodians. Through my learning from Mr. Zaw, our guide during the trip, the plenty of stupas and temples which had been built in Bagan were all dedication from the top leaders, the Kings, until the grassroots citizen of Myanmar, who were normal people, this is a bit contrast to the Cambodian case which all the temples here were built by the King. Evidences really showed that until now the people of Myanmar still putting religion as a center for their way of leading and ruling this country. A lot of temples, giant stupas and Buddha images were built by the current government that we had visited were definitely spend huge amount of money for those achievements. The Myanmar people, in other word, spending most of their time to pay homage to their Nats, sitting and praying loudly at the temple as in the cases at Shwedagon Pagoda and Mahamuni sitting Buddha, that people get up very early to attend the Buddha face washing ceremony. 

I a wider perspective, I think that Myanmar people are still in a kind of traditional practice comparing with the Cambodians. Men still using the logyi and chewing the betel and areca which all of these practices nearly disappear in Cambodia. In another impression following the visit to many sites, I observed that, even the ways of leading the country of the Myanmar government were seem like in the past. It seemed to me that the government tried to keep people satisfied by building many huge religious sites in other to gain belief from the people. The way they gave honor to their great kings in the past and especially the forming of new capital city of Naypyidaw which mean Royal City or abode of kings, was a good example.

Through the visit to their great sites such as the old Palace Museum in Mandalay and the National Museum in Yangon and other old cities and monasteries I had pictured myself the glorious past of Myanmar and the power of their Kings which I think that they we extremely powerful compare to the Kings in Cambodia while the glorious of Myanmar appeared at the same time of the declines of Angkor. It was then no doubt that the Kings of Myanmar invaded Ayuthya of Thailand many times. It is perhaps my conclusion, I maybe wrong, that the current government is proud of their past and the way of ruling a vast area of land.

My trip this time to Myanmar brought a lot of lesson and understand more about our neighboring countries and it was a plus to what we have study in class. I had enjoyed the trips so much and I hope we will have this kind of trip one more time. Thanks to everyone who help making this trip a lot of success.

Photos:
1 and 2 show the daily activities of Myanmar people which share similarity with the Cambodian
3 the great stupas and temples built in Bagan
4 the great stupa called Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangoon

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